On 4 March, Taiwan’s MOFA expressed gratitude to 55 UK parliamentarians who co-signed a letter to WHO Director-General Ghebreyesus expressing their grave concern over the global body’s unfair treatment of Taiwan. The letter, signed by British-Taiwanese All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) Co-Chairs Lord Rogan and Martin Vickers and 53 other lawmakers from both houses of parliament, urged WHO Director-General Ghebreyesus to correct the global body’s wrongful classification of Taiwan under China’s jurisdiction, including erroneously listing Taiwan under China in its situation reports on the 2019 novel coronavirus. The UK parliamentarians stressed that Taiwan is not under China’s jurisdiction, adding that Taiwan’s and China’s health care systems are managed by completely separate and independent health authorities. They also pointed out that the WHO’s decision to list Taiwan as part of China in its reports not only incorrectly suggests that Taiwan possesses “very high risk” of the 2019 novel coronavirus, but also leads to inappropriate policy decisions, but also seriously impedes the timely exchange of information between proper health authorities.
The parliamentarians pointed out that the WHO’s treatment of Taiwan as part of China and exclusion of Taiwan greatly hinders the shared goal of building a seamless global health security network. The UK lawmakers stressed that globalisation dramatically increases the transmission of infectious diseases, and that blocking Taiwan from the global health network thus seriously impairs international preparedness and response to public health emergencies like the 2019 novel coronavirus, putting everyone at risk. The parliamentarians pointed out that despite close economic ties and geographical proximity to China, Taiwan’s number of confirmed cases is limited, adding “this is testament to the Taiwan health authority’s effective management and control over the situation.” The parliamentarians stressed that Taiwan’s experience and expertise in dealing with health emergencies should therefore be highly valued and widely shared within the international community. The letter concluded by calling on the WHO to immediately correct its wrongful treatment of Taiwan as part of China and urged for Taiwan’s prompt inclusion in all WHO technical meetings and activities, including the World Health Assembly.
